Marquette’s Sophie Coxon skis the course at Boyne Mountain in Boyne Falls during the MHSAA Finals in Division 1 girls skiing held on Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. Coxon had top-six finishes in both slalom and giant slalom. (Photo courtesy Adam Sheehan Photography via MHSAA.com)

BOYNE FALLS — Marquette freshman Sydney Kuhl made her presence known as she captured an MHSAA Finals title in the slalom in girls alpine skiing with a two-run combined time of 68.76 seconds Monday to lead the Sentinels to the Division 1 team championship at Boyne Mountain.

“I definitely did not expect to win the state championship. I tried to calm myself. I just wanted to be happy with how I skied,” Kuhl said. “I’m really happy for all of us. We all earned it.”

Marquette pulled off what observers called an upset at the state finals, considering the Sentinels finished third at its regional held two weeks earlier behind Traverse City Central and TC West.

This was Marquette’s first team state championship in girls skiing since 2020, ripping the title from the grasp of those Traverse City schools, which combined had won each of the last five championships.

Kuhl won the slalom by nearly a second ahead of TC Central senior Quinn Gerber (69.66) and Grand Haven’s Neave Rewa (70.10) in second and third, respectively. Rewa was the 2025 slalom champion.

The Sentinels also saw solid slalom contributions from Sophie Coxon in fifth place in 72.91 seconds, Estelle Dehlin in seventh in 73.39, Lyla Isaacson in 17th in 78.44 and Madalyn Croney in 18th in 79.38 to give Marquette the lead after the morning session.

Kuhl led the Sentinels in the giant slalom as well with a fourth-place finish in 72.32, while Coxon finished sixth in 72.86 and Dehlin seventh in 72.89 as Marquette held on for the championship after TC Central came roaring back. MSHS’ Jillian Starr was 24th and Isaacson 28th.

Kuhl, Coxon and Dehlin were named First Team All-State for their top-10 finishes, according to MSHS head coach Christy Provost, while Isaacson and Croney won Second Team All-State for placing in the second 10 in slalom.

Marquette finished with 56 points, while TC Central had 62 and TC West 76.

Starr, Marquette’s lone senior, said she’ll always remember this journey with her teammates.

“We knew we had a good chance because of the steepness of the hill. That’s what we are used to. We were all at dinner last night talking about how excited we were. I’m so proud of these girls,” she said.

Avery Taggart took home the victory for TC Central in GS with a time of 71.65 seconds, narrowly edging her teammate Gerber (72.00). Rewa finished third again in GS.

“I was expecting it to be super close, and we did the best that we could. I think we all performed well,” said Taggart, who was fourth in the morning’s slalom with 71.28 seconds. “I honestly didn’t think I would win. I was super nervous, and I didn’t do as well as I wanted in the morning (slalom). When I went out for GS, I was going to take a chance for my team.”

Gerber wrapped up her career as a two-time finals champion and one of the all-time best at TC Central.

“We knew it was gonna be cold, which leads to harder snow…. (Taggart) and I have been battling with each other all year. This was our last race together. We always pushed each other,” Gerber said.

The top three teams were followed by Brighton in fourth, then Clarkston, Lake Fenton, Northville, Farmington Hills Mercy and Berkley-Athens-Troy rounding out the field in that order.

Brian Freiberger is a freelance writer and photographer based in downstate Onsted, located south of Jackson. He graduated from the University of Olivet in 2019. This story is posted on the MHSAA website at www.mhsaa.com.